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Goods and Services Tax: The Introduction Process
G. Raghuram
K.S. Deepa
W.P. No.2015-03-01 March 2015
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INDIAN INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT AHMEDABAD-380 015
INDIA
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W.P. No. 2015-03-01 Page No. 2
Goods and Services Tax: The Introduction Process
G. Raghuram
Professor
Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad
Email: [email protected]
K.S. Deepa
Graduate Student, Master of Public Policy
National Law School of India University
Bangalore
Email: [email protected]
Abstract
This paper focuses on the process of introducing the Goods and
Services Tax (GST), bringing
out the perspectives of different stakeholders and the
contentious issues. The GST was expected
to subsume a variety of taxes and simplify the indirect tax
regime. The Empowered Committee
(EC) was mandated in 2007, to bring about consensus among the
States to move towards GST.
The important stakeholders in the process were the Government of
India (GoI), individual States,
industry and the committees commissioned by the GoI or EC.
However, the EC faced challenges
since there were issues of control between the Centre and
States, perceived loss of revenue by
some States, extent of uniformity across various commodities and
their tax rates, input credit
mechanism and dispute settlement. The deadline for the
introduction of GST kept getting
postponed due to the slow resolution of the challenging issues.
Finally, it was tabled in the
Parliament as the 122nd
Constitutional Amendment Bill (CAB) in December 2014.
Keywords: GST, Constitutional Amendment, Indirect Tax,
Federalism
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W.P. No. 2015-03-01 Page No. 3
Goods and Services Tax: The Introduction Process
On December 20, 2014, the Empowered Committee (EC) of the State
Finance Ministers (FMs)
agreed to support the 122nd
Constitution Amendment Bill (CAB) if the States were
adequately
compensated for the loss of revenue. On December 19, 2014, the
122nd
CAB was tabled in
Parliament for the introduction of Goods and Services Tax (GST)
that allowed a parallel levy of
indirect taxes on the supply of goods or services or both by the
Centre and State Governments
(including Union Territories). It introduced a dual taxation
system subsuming the various
indirect taxes levied then (Exhibit 1). The 122nd
CAB was a culmination of the sustained efforts
of the EC, which had been working since its constitution on July
17, 2000 (Exhibit 2).
According to the 122nd
CAB,1 the term 'GST' was defined by introducing a clause 12A in
Article
366 of the Constitution of India, to mean any tax on supply of
goods or services or both except taxes on supply of the alcoholic
liquor for human consumption. Services under the 122nd CAB means
anything other than goods. State with reference to articles 246A,
268, 269, 269A and article 279A includes a Union territory with the
Legislature.
Thus, all the supply of goods or services or both would attract
Centre level Goods and Service
Tax (CGST; to be levied by the Centre) and State level Goods and
Service Tax (SGST; to be
levied by State) unless kept out of the purview of GST. As GST
would be applicable to 'supply',
the erstwhile taxable events such as 'manufacture', 'sale' and
'provision of services' would lose
their relevance. GST would enable a larger tax collection base
and prevent cascading of taxes1.
The EC was formed on July 17, 2000 with FMs of seven states as
its members with the objective
to monitor the smooth implementation of the then proposed Value
Added Tax (VAT) across the
country. Later on, the reconstituted EC with FMs of all the
States was registered as a society on
August 17, 2004 with Asim Dasgupta (then FM, West Bengal) as its
Chairman.2
Indirect Taxation Reforms in India
Charges levied by the State on consumption, expenditure,
privilege, or right, but not on income
or property are called Indirect Taxes (Exhibit 3). There was an
effort to reform indirect taxes
with the formation of an Indirect Taxation Enquiry Committee
(ITEC) in 1976 (Annexure 1).
The ITEC submitted its report in 1978. After a decade of
submission of the report by ITEC, a
Long Term Fiscal Policy report (Annexure I) was presented along
with the Union Budget of
1985-86 under VP Singh, the then Union FM. Accepting its
recommendations, a Modified
Value Added Tax (MODVAT) was introduced on a few commodities on
March 1, 1986. A Tax
Reforms Committee with Raja J Chelliah as its Chairman was
formed on August 29, 1991. The
committee gave its recommendations to introduce VAT at the
manufacturing level covering all
Written by G Raghuram and KS Deepa. The authors acknowledge the
contributions made by Abhiruchi Kaul and Stuti Bansal. 1 The
Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty Second) Amendment Bill
2014,
http://www.prsindia.org/uploads/media/Constitution%20115/SCR%20summary-%20GST.pdf,
accessed on December 21, 2014 2
http://www.empcom.gov.in/content/6_1_AboutUs.aspx, accessed on
December 22, 2014
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W.P. No. 2015-03-01 Page No. 4
goods in December 1991. The recommendations were accepted and
introduced partially by the
Government of India (GoI) in the Budget of 1993-94.3
On November 16, 1999, it was decided by Yashwant Sinha, the then
Union FM in a meeting of
State Chief Ministers (CMs) to take steps for introduction of
nationwide State level VAT in
order to avoid the cascading effect of taxes. MODVAT was renamed
as Central level Value
Added Tax (CENVAT) wef April 1, 2000, which introduced new
CENVAT Credit Rules. The
EC formed was to supervise the implementation of VAT and to
monitor the phasing out of the
sales tax based incentive schemes. These Rules sought to
introduce simplified CENVAT
provisions and procedures for allowing credit of duty paid on
specified inputs and capital goods
used in or in relation to manufacture of specified final
products. CENVAT Credit Rules were
introduced wef March 1, 2002. The new rules contained complete
provisions for taking credit of
duty paid on inputs and capital goods.4 A Task Force on Indirect
Taxes, formed in July 2002
under the chairmanship of Vijay Kelkar, Adviser to Minister of
Finance and Company Affairs,
gave its view that VAT is a major reform in the indirect tax
system of India.5 The EC had been working for the execution of
State level VAT dealing with inside (State demands) and outside
(industry, exporters and other stakeholders) pressures.
Moving towards GST
A Task Force on the implementation of Fiscal Responsibility and
Budget Management Act was
formed by the Central Government on February 18, 2004 under the
chairmanship of Vijay
Kelkar in 2003. The report submitted to the Central Government
on July 16, 2004, strongly
recommended the adoption of GST for the indirect taxation in
India.6
The Kelkar Task Force report stated that India has been moving
slowly but steadily towards
VAT since 1986 but the system still had many problems leading to
a low tax GDP ratio (Exhibit
4). Giving solution to the problems, they suggested the
introduction of CGST. The report said, the tax on services should
be fully integrated with the existing CENVAT on goods by a modern
VAT type levy on all goods and services to be imposed by the
central government (CGST). The report also gave the features to be
included in the design of CGST.
7
The concept of GST was introduced in the Parliament for the
first time on February 28, 2006 by
P Chidambaram, the then Union FM in the Union Budget Speech of
2006-07. He remarked, It is my sense that there is a large
consensus that the country should move towards a national level
GST that should be shared between the Centre and the States. I
propose that we set April 1, 2010
as the date for introducing GST. The world over, goods and
services attract the same rate of tax.
That is the foundation of a GST.8
3 Sury, M M (ed) (2006). Taxation in India 1925 to 2007:
History, Policy, Trends and Outlook, Indian Tax foundation,
New Delhi 4
https://www.welingkaronline.org/DLP/FINANCE%20-%20CENVAT%20AND%20ITS%20IMPLICATIONS.pdf,
accessed on January 22, 2015 5 Sury, M M (ed) (2006). Taxation
in India 1925 to 2007: History, Policy, Trends and Outlook, Indian
Tax foundation,
New Delhi 6 http://www.caaa.in/Image/23ugsthb.pdf , accessed on
January 22, 2015
7 Report of Task Force on Implementation of FRBM Act, 2003 dated
July 16, 2004
8 http://indiabudget.nic.in/ub2006-07/bs/speecha.htm, accessed
on Janurary 14, 2015
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W.P. No. 2015-03-01 Page No. 5
In the budget speech of 2007-08, P Chidambaram reiterated, At my
request, the EC of State FMs has agreed to work with the Central
Government to prepare a roadmap for introducing a
national level GST wef April 1, 2010.9
After the announcement made by P Chidambaram, the EC decided to
set up a Joint Working
Group on May 10, 2007, with Dr Parthasarthi Shome, the then
Adviser to the Union FM and
Satish Chandra, the Member-Secretary of EC as Co-conveners, and
the concerned Joint
Secretaries of the Department of Revenue of Union Finance
Ministry and all Finance Secretaries
of the States as its members.
This Joint Working Group, after intensive internal discussions
as well as interaction with experts
and representatives of Chambers of Commerce and Industry,
submitted its report10
to the EC on
November 19, 2007.
The objectives of this report were:
To study the various models of GST existing globally
To identify the possible alternative models for introduction of
GST in India
To examine their various characteristics and assess their
suitability in Indias fiscal federal context.
To identify the Central Taxes and State Taxes which possess
properties to be appropriately subsumed under GST
To suggest a model for the base and rate structure of GST
To constitute sub working groups
This report was then discussed in detail at the meeting of EC
held on November 28, 2007. On the
basis of this discussion and written observations of the States,
certain modifications were made
and a final version of the views of EC at that stage was
prepared.
In his 2008 budget speech, P Chidambaram announced the reduction
of Central Sales Tax (CST)
from four percent to two percent. He also expressed the desire
of GoI to introduce GST from
April 1, 2010.
The views of the EC prepared in November was sent to the GoI on
April 30, 2008. In the
meantime, Manmohan Singh, the then Prime Minister (PM) took over
as interim FM on
November 28, 2008 from P Chidambaram. The comments of the GoI
were received on
December 12, 2008 and were duly considered by the EC on December
16, 2008.
However, the report was never made public. In the meantime,
Parthasarthi Shome had quit his
post as advisor to the FM on January 11, 2008, after being
passed over for the post of Union
Revenue Secretary.
A Committee of Principal Secretaries/Secretaries
(Finance/Taxation) and Commissioners of
Trade/Taxes of all States was set up to consider the comments of
GoI and work out CGST and
SGST rates. They had detailed deliberations on January 5 and 6,
2009 and submitted their
recommendations to the EC. These were accepted by the EC on
January 21, 2009.
On the same day, the EC also decided to constitute a Working
Group consisting of Principal
Secretaries/Secretaries (Finance/Taxation), Commissioners of
Trade/Taxes of all States and
9 Ibid.
10http://tinxsys.com/TinxsysInternetWeb/GSTJointWorkingGroup.pdf,
accessed on January 22, 2015
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W.P. No. 2015-03-01 Page No. 6
senior representatives of GoI to give their recommendations
concerning three issues. They were
related to (i) commodities and services on the exempted list,
(ii) rules and principles in taxing
services and (iii) finalising the model of interstate stock
transfers of goods and services.
Pranab Mukherjee took over as Union FM from Manmohan Singh on
January 24, 2009. The
Working Group met on February 10, 2009 and formed three sub
working groups to study the
three issues.
Structure of GST
The Working Group submitted their detailed recommendations on
the three issues which
provided a structure of GST. They submitted their report on
November 11, 2009. The report
favoured a dual GST system. The dual system implied that tax was
to be levied concurrently,
both at the Centre and at the State level called CGST and SGST
respectively.
In the meantime, Sukumar Mukhopadhyay, former member of the
Central Board of Excise and
Customs (CBEC) called the dual GST system as the best solution
for a country like India in June
2009. A single GST system was also not agreed upon by the
States, fearing revenue loss because
a single system of tax would be levied by GoI alone.
On June 29, 2009, Govinda Rao, then a member of Union FMs
Economic Council had urged PM Manmohan Singh to delay the
implementation of new tax rules till the Centre and the States
reached a consensus. The FM of Tamil Nadu, K Anbazhagan had also
shared the same
viewpoint.
The new Union FM Pranab Mukherjee, while presenting the Budget
on July 6, 2009 reiterated
that GST would come into effect from April 1, 2010.
A FICCI-Technopak report on Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCGs)
was released in July
2009. This report suggested that the GoI needed to rapidly
implement GST to replace the
multiple indirect taxes currently levied on FMCGs. This would
lead to reduced prices and
increased tax collections.
In September 2009, the States reached a consensus on a two rate
system as suggested by Asim
Dasgupta. This system implied a concessional rate for essential
items and a standard rate for
other goods. The two rate system proposed by the states also had
a special GST for precious
metals and a list of exempted items. In the same month, Asim
Dasgupta also announced that a
Joint Working Group would be formed to decide the framework of
the dual tax system and issues
relating to special rates. The committee was mandated to submit
its report in two months time.
Chattisgarh, Haryana, Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh
expressed their reservations
on the introduction of GST.
On October 17, 2009, Sushil K Modi, then Deputy CM of Bihar
demanded adequate
compensation from the Centre. In his view, Bihar would lose Rs
600 cr since entry tax would get
merged with GST and another Rs 260 cr as service tax from the
Centre would be subsumed
under GST. At that time, entry tax was imposed by the States and
service tax was levied by the
Centre and distributed to the States. Following this, on October
26, 2009, Rajnath Singh,
President of BJP, opposed the GST regime stating that the trader
organizations should also be
considered before bringing forward any new laws.
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W.P. No. 2015-03-01 Page No. 7
Saurabh Patel, the then Minister of State for Finance and
Industry, Gujarat, asked the Central
Government on November 2, 2009 for the protection of industries
under GST administration. He
also wanted an open debate on GST and the list of exempted
items.
First Discussion Paper
A First Discussion Paper (FDP) was released by the EC inviting
interactions with industry, trade,
agriculture and common people on November 10, 2009. The FDP gave
details of the structure of
the GST model to be introduced in India and an Annexure on
frequently asked questions and
answers on GST. 11
This document also gave justification for adopting GST, stating
that it would
improve the existing VAT. It also described the process of
preparation of GST and a
comprehensive structure of the GST model.
Due to the ongoing talks related to shifting towards GST at that
time, the States started asking
the Central Government for compensations up to five years in
order to overcome the revenue
losses. It was feared that since some States were not big
consumers of services, they would lose
revenue. Also, having a single rate all over would remove the
autonomy that the States had
earlier to fix State tax rates.
On December 12, 2009, Asim Dasgupta announced that GST would
have four slabs: a standard
rate for the majority of goods and services, a moderate rate for
essential items, 1 percent rate for
precious metals and exempted items.
A Task Force on GST formed by the Thirteenth Finance Commission
(FC) gave its report on
December 15, 2009. This report said, the discussions on the
introduction of a comprehensive dual GST, both at the Centre and
State level, have been in progress since early 2006. It is
unfortunate that no agreement on the GST has yet been reached
even though the target date for
its introduction ie, 1st April, 2010, is less than six months.
It also suggested pushing the date of implementation of GST to
October 1, 2010.
12 The Task Force on GST was formed by the
Thirteenth FC in June 2008, with Arbind Modi, the then Joint
Secretary, Department of Revenue
as its Chairman.
National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER) was asked
by the Thirteenth FC to
prepare a report on the impact of GST on Indias growth and
international trade. The study was done with Rajesh Chadha, Senior
Fellow at NCAER as project leader. It was submitted in
December 2009.
Soon after that, on December 20, 2009, the PMs Economic Advisory
Council Chairman, C Rangarajan said that he favoured a single slab
each for goods and services or one common rate
for both, unlike the proposal mooted by the States. This was
followed by the reports of the EC
stating that while the 13th
Financial Commission had recognised a single GST of 12 per cent,
it
had decided to adopt a two rate structure.
A discussion of FMs of BJP ruled states on January 7, 2010
revealed their preference for
introducing GST in April 2011. The main concern raised at this
meeting was that the GST rates
were not yet confirmed. The states also feared revenue loss and
low compensation packages. On
January 13, 2010, Pranab Mukherjee met the state FMs as a pre
budget exercise, to discuss the
issues of GST rates, compensation packages and modalities of
implementation of GST. It was
11
First Discussion Paper on GST released on November 10, 2009,
accessed on December 20, 2014 12
Report of Task Force on Goods & Services Tax, accessed on
December 19, 2014
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W.P. No. 2015-03-01 Page No. 8
confirmed at this meeting that the implementation of GST would
be pushed to April 2011 as it
would take seven to eight months to pass the Constitutional
amendments necessary to introduce
the GST bill.
On January 22, 2010 FC briefed the FM on its recommendations on
sharing tax receipts between
the GoI and the states. This had a significant bearing on GST.
It was proposed that the CST
would be subsumed in GST leading to a revenue loss to the states
concerned.13
In the budget speech delivered on February 27, 2010 the FM
revealed the GoIs intention to implement GST from April 2011. He
also called for a Technology Advisory Group for Unique
Project (TAGUP) for an effective tax administration and
financial governance system through the creation of IT projects
that are secure and efficient (Exhibit 5).
On May 22, 2010, the GoI decided to introduce Direct Tax Code
(DTC) to replace the Income
Tax Act, 1961 (Exhibit 6).
On June 8, 2010, the FM set up a seven member committee as
TAGUP,14
headed by Nandan
Nilekani to recommend technical, regulatory and legal changes
required to implement five
projects including GST. TAGUP was asked to submit its
recommendations in a report within six
months to the FM.
In order to evolve a consensus with States on a single rate
structure for GST, the FM met with
EC on July 21, 2010. He proposed a three tier tax structure in
which a combined rate of 20%,
12% and 16% were to be charged respectively for goods, essential
items and services. Out of
these rates, the States would receive rates of 10%, 6 % and 8 %
respectively. Central indirect
taxes like excise duty and service tax, and state indirect taxes
like VAT and octroi would be
subsumed in GST. The FM also considered stepping up the
compensation package of the states
above the rates prescribed by the Thirteenth FC.
In the National Development Council (NDC) meet on July 25, 2010,
the State CMs expressed
their reservations on the implementation of GST on account of
lower compensation package and
loss of revenue of the states. The Gujarat CM Narendra Modi
suggested that adequate IT
infrastructure should be in place before the implementation of
GST. The Punjab CM Prakash
Singh Badal took strong objection to the absorption of purchase
tax on agricultural crops under
the GST stating that states would lose revenue on a continuous
basis.
Towards Constitutional Amendment
On August 4, 2010 the State CMs met for scrutinizing the CAB
drafted by the Centre in order to
introduce the GST. To pass the bill with two thirds majority,
362 members of Lok Sabha and 161
members of the Rajya Sabha had to give assent to the draft bill
(Exhibit 7).
The States rejected the draft bill based on two reasons.15
The draft bill provided for a GST
Council consisting of State FMs, the Union FM, and the Union
Minister of State (MoS) for
Revenue to make recommendations with respect to GST. In matters
where a consensus could not
be reached, the Union FM had a veto over the State FMs. The
States opposed this provision.
13 CST is the tax that the GoI levies on goods that pass among
states and distributes it to the states. 14
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/finance-ministry-sets-up-technology-advisory-group/article449063.ece,
accessed on January 31,2015 15
http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/states-reject-gst-draft-bill-over-centres-veto-powers/article552468.ece,
accessed on February 2, 2015
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W.P. No. 2015-03-01 Page No. 9
The draft bill also empowered Parliament to establish a GST
Dispute Settlement Authority
(GDSA), an executive body. This Authority would adjudicate
disputes referred to it by a State or
GoI and the final appeal lay with the Supreme Court of India
(SC). The States viewed this
provision as interference of the executive and the judiciary in
legislative provenance.
After this meeting, the EC asked for a Second Discussion Paper.
This move made it clear that the
draft bill could not be introduced in the monsoon session of the
Parliament.
On August 9, 2010, GoI discussed the draft bill with BJP, the
main opposition party. Following
this, on August 16, 2010, Pranab Mukherjee gave the BJP a
revised draft bill removing the veto
power of the Union FM. The BJP convened a meeting of eight FMs
of the NDA ruled states
(Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Chhattisgarh, Himachal
Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Bihar and
Punjab) to build consensus over the draft bill.
At the meeting convened on August 18, 2010, no consensus was
reached. The States decided to
individually present their views to the EC.
On August 31, 2010, Revenue Secretary Sunil Mitra announced that
DTC would come into
effect from April 1, 2012. This would bring down the revenue for
the Centre by Rs 53,172 cr. He
mentioned that this loss could be made up for, only with the
simultaneous introduction of GST.
On September 13, 2010, the DTC bill was introduced in the
Parliament.
On October 31, 2010, the Finance Ministry clarified that the
demand of EC for altering the basic
structure of the GST including removing GST Council and GDSA was
not acceptable. NDA
ruled States and Uttar Pradesh (UP) continued their
opposition.
On February 5, 2011, Nandan Nilekani submitted the TAGUP report
to the FM.16
TAGUP was
asked to make detailed recommendations regarding the
technological architecture of five IT
intensive projects including GST. It was also asked to address
and make recommendations
regarding human resources to co-ordinate projects among GoI,
State and local governments and
between government and other organisations. The key
recommendations of TAGUP were (i)
setting up National Information Utilities (NIU) to handle IT
systems for five projects, including
GST and (ii) putting in place a Mission Execution Team with a
dedicated mission leader to
coordinate projects between governments and other
organisations.
On February 13, 2011, Pranab Mukherjee decided to call for a
meeting with State FMs during
the recess17
of the budget. The purpose of this meet was to build a consensus
over the third
version18
of the draft GST bill that was presented on January 28, 2011.
The FM clarified that GoI
wanted to introduce the GST bill in the second half of the
budget session, that was to take place
between April 4 and April 21, 2011. The third draft empowered
the Parliament to set up a GST
council. The earlier drafts had endorsed the setting up of the
GST council by a Presidential order.
16
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/nilekani-submits-tagup-report-to-pranab/article1156635.ece,
accessed on February 4, 2015 17
Recess of the budget is a month long interval between the first
half of the budget session in which the budget is presented and the
second half. Recess is used by PSCs to analyse ministry wise
provisions given in the budget. 18
The first version of the draft bill was made by GoI in July 21,
2010. The second version on August 11, 2010, immediately followed
the opposition of State CMs, in which the veto of the FM in GST
Council was removed.
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W.P. No. 2015-03-01 Page No. 10
On February 28, 2011, in his budget speech, Pranab Mukherjee
announced that DTC would be
implemented from April 1, 2012. He expressed the desire of GoI
to simultaneously implement
GST on the same day.
On March 22, 2011, Finance Bill 2011 was passed by the Lok Sabha
(LS). In this bill, it was
revealed that National Securities Depository Ltd would be the
technical partner for operating the
IT structure of the proposed GST.19
On the same day, the 115th
CAB, popularly called the GST
bill, was tabled in the Parliament by Pranab Mukherjee.20
On March 29, 2011, the bill was
referred to the Parliamentary Standing Committee (PSC) on
Finance, headed by Yashwant Sinha,
to make a detailed examination (Exhibit 9).
On May 13, 2011, Asim Dasgupta lost assembly elections in West
Bengal and stepped down as
the Chairman of the EC.
In response to a public notice inviting views on the 115th
CAB issued by the PSC, FICCI
submitted its response through a letter dated June 24,
2011.21
In its response, FICCI
recommended (i) the speedy implementation of IGST in lieu of
CST, (ii) uniform rate of GST on
both goods and services, (iii) simple tax structure with minimal
tax rates, (iv) uniform threshold
limit for goods and services both at the Central and State level
and (v) a unified appellate and
adjudication authority for dispute settlement.
The PSC had two detailed sittings with the EC22
on June 8 and June 27, 2011, in which concerns
raised by the States regarding the 115th
CAB were discussed.
At the EC meeting on July 18, 2011, Sushil K Modi was
unanimously elected as the new
chairman.23
The EC also decided to meet in mid August to discuss the
compensation package to
be given to the States, due to the phasing out of the CST.
On August 4, 2011, Pranab Mukherjee met with Sushil K Modi to
discuss how the EC would
deliberate on the issues related to GST. On the same day, Nandan
Nilekani had a meeting with
Pranab Mukherjee on introducing a centralised IT infrastructure
for GST.
The EC met on August 19, 2011, to discuss the IT infrastructure
for GST, the compensation
package in lieu of CST and the 115th
CAB. Due to further delay in implementing GST, the States
concurred to extend the CST compensation package to the year
2010. In this meeting, the States
also raised their concerns about the loss of their fiscal
autonomy and the powers of GDSA. They
wanted the GoI to empower them to levy a cess in case of natural
calamity.
19
http://www.jsalaw.com/Admin/uplodedfiles/PublicationFiles/Budget%20news%20letter.pdf,
accessed on
February 4, 2015 20
This refers to the third draft of the 115th
Constitutional Amendment Bill. 21
http://www.ficci.com/spdocument/20238/Towards-the-GST-Approach-Paper-Apri-2013.pdf,
accessed on February 5, 2015 22
The first meeting was attended by Asim Dasgupta to represent the
views of the EC during his chairmanship. The second meet was
attended by Sushil K Modi, representing the concerns to be
considered by EC in the coming months. 23
http://www.thehindu.com/news/states-to-look-for-new-chief-to-steer-gst/article2016033.ece,
accessed on
February 5, 2015
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W.P. No. 2015-03-01 Page No. 11
Compensation for the States
In response to the outcome of the EC meet, GoI asked the States
to file for CST compensation
for the previous financial year of 2010-11.
In the next meet of the EC on October 14, 2011, three issues
were discussed. The first issue was
about the unresolved taxation concerns of GoI and the States
with respect to VAT. The States
mulled over the possibility of additional excise duty on
textiles, tobacco and sugar. They also
considered imposing VAT on textiles and sugar. The States
discussed their views on online
payment of taxes. The EC decided to come out with a report on
its experience of its GST Team that recently visited Europe to
study GST issues.
On January 10, 2012, the EC made four recommendations. The EC
asked GoI (i) to remove the
upper limit of professional tax,24
(ii) to end centrally sponsored schemes and to provide funds
directly to the States according to their needs and with suitable
guidelines, (iii) to transfer health
and education funds to the Consolidated Fund of the States
instead of districts, and (iv) to
empower the States to impose VAT on imports.
In the pre budget discussion with State FMs on January 19, 2012,
Pranab Mukherjee assured the
States on their concerns raised during the previous EC meeting.
He also discussed the issue of
improved and inclusive growth as the country was about to enter
the 12th
Five Year Plan (FYP).
Pranab Mukherjee presented the Union budget on March 16, 2012.
In his budget speech, he
alluded to the model legislation for the Centre and the States
for CGST and SGST that was under
progress. Referring to the structure of GST Network (GSTN)
approved by the EC, he said that
GSTN would be set up as a National Information Utility (NIU) by
August 2012.25
On March 4, 2012, the EC asked for an adequate compensation
package in lieu of CST. They put
out a negative list of 35 services to be kept out of the GST. It
was decided that implementation of
GST would be postponed to April 1, 2013. On March 5, 2012,
Pranab Mukherjee constituted a
PSC to look into the litigation of indirect taxes.
Subir Gokarn, the Deputy Governor of the Reserve Bank of India
addressed the Confederation of
Indian Industries (CII) annual meet on March 30, 2012.26
In his address, he conjectured that the
proposed GST would create space for the interest rate to come
down and contribute to growth.
He also said that GST would bring down inflation.
On March 30, 2012, the GoI set up a study team headed by MK
Gupta, Vice Chairman of the
Central Excise and Customs Settlement Commission.27
The mandate of the study team was (i) to
evolve a common tax code, (ii) to look into the proposal to
subsume service tax and Central
24
Professional Tax could be levied by the States under article 176
of the Constitution. Based on a 1988 amendment, the upper cap was
set at Rs 2500. The States wanted this cap removed since
professional remuneration had increased substantially in the
intervening years. 25
The GSTN was a proposed system through which GST returns filing
and payments processing for all States was based on a shared
platform through registered PAN network. 26
http://www.thehindu.com/business/Economy/gst-will-help-contain-inflation/article3263158.ece,
accessed on
February 6, 2015 27
http://www.thehindu.com/business/Economy/centre-sets-up-study-team-to-evolve-common-tax-
code/article3297428.ece, accessed on February 6, 2015
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W.P. No. 2015-03-01 Page No. 12
excise duty under the GST, (iii) to simplify the input tax
credit system and (iv) to make the
procedure of GST trade friendly. The study team was asked to
weigh in the inputs from various
segments of the industry and submit a report to the FM by
September 30, 2012.
In the second consultative meeting of the committee attached to
his ministry, Pranab Mukherjee
outlined the benefits of the proposed GST to the Centre, State
and the consumer, on May 23,
2012. He mentioned that the GST would (i) remove cascading
effect of the indirect taxes at the
Centre, (ii) encourage the States to realise tax commensurate
with consumption and (iii) make
the tax regime, transparent to the consumer and reduce the tax
burden by 25-30 per cent.
On June 26, 2012, Pranab Mukherjee stepped down as Union FM, in
order to file his
nominations as the Presidential candidate.28
PM Manmohan Singh assumed role of the interim
Union FM.
On July 1, 2012, the new service tax regime came into
force.29
This was based on a uniform rate
of 12 per cent and a negative list of 28 activities.
Commerce and Industries Minister Anand Sharma in an interaction
with the industry on July 15,
2012, mentioned that GST would attract investment. On July 31,
2012, P Chidambaram took
over as the Union FM.
On October 25, 2012, the EC met with P Chidambaram to discuss
their concerns regarding the
GST. The EC argued for (i) restoration of CST pending further
compensation after 2010-11 and
(ii) petroleum products to be kept in the exempted list. The
talk ended in an impasse.
On January 2, 2013, the Fourteenth FC was constituted by Pranab
Mukherjee under the
chairmanship of Y V Reddy.30
The FC was mandated to recommend fiscal policy reforms for
the period 2015-16 to 2020-21.
On January 25, 2013, the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural
Resources asked the Union FM to
bring crude oil, petrol, diesel, Air Turbine Fuel (ATF) and
natural gas under the GST. The 13th
FC had also recommended the same and had stated that the States
could levy additional excise
tax on these items over the GST. But the FDP and PSC report had
specified petroleum products
in the exempted list.
In his budget speech of 2013-14,31
P Chidambaram announced that (i) the first instalment of the
CST compensation package for the States of Rs 9000 cr would be
immediately released and (ii)
the DTC would be introduced in the second half of the budget
session. He also called for the
speedy implementation of the GST.
In an interaction with ASSOCHAM on March 22, 2013,32
Parthasarathi Shome, Advisor to the
Union FM, mentioned that the EC was examining the structural and
administrative reforms
28
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/pranab-takes-leave-pm-sees-void/article3569281.ece,
accessed on February 6, 2015 29
http://www.thehindu.com/business/Economy/new-service-tax-regime-comes-into-effect-from-sunday/article3589492.ece,
accessed on February 7, 2015 30
http://finmin.nic.in/14fincomm/14fcrengVol1.pdf, February 28,
2015 31
http://indiabudget.nic.in/budget2012-2013/ub2012-13/bs/bs.pdf,
accessed on February 8, 2015 32
http://www.thehindu.com/business/Industry/gst-has-a-good-probability-in-tax-horizon-parthasarathi-shome/article4535047.ece,
accessed on February 11, 2015
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W.P. No. 2015-03-01 Page No. 13
required for the introduction of GST. He also said that GST
could not be implemented unless
there was a seamless distribution of input credits, facilitating
interstate trade and getting refunds
from one State to another.
At the meet on May 10, 2013, the EC decided that there would be
no dichotomy between the
exemption list of the Centre and the States. The EC approved 12
out of 96 items in the State
exemption list and asked the Centre to prune their list of 243
items. The EC also asked for
increasing the threshold of exemption of dual GST of small
traders from Rs 25 lakhs to Rs 1.5 cr.
The EC also asked for compensation for the States for five years
from 2009-10, after the phasing
out of CST.
On May 28, 2013, the PM in an interaction with Japanese and
Indian businessmen, expressed the
hope that GST would be implemented after the 2014 general
elections.
On July 17, 2013, Sushil K Modi resigned as EC chairman
following the split of Janata Dal (U)
and the BJP in Bihar. On July 22, 2013, Abdul Rahim Rather was
elected the third chairman of
the EC.33
In an interaction with the PSC on August 9, 2013,34
the 13th
FC Chairman Vijay Kelkar
mentioned that after the implementation of the GST, (i)
agricultural prices would increase by
0.61-1.18 per cent, (ii) manufacturing foods would be available
at a reduced price of 1.22-2.53
per cent (iii) about 20 million high end jobs were expected to
emerge in the economy and that
(iv) inflation would come down35
.
On August 7, 2013, the PSC tabled its 73rd
report in the Parliament.36
The main
recommendations of the report were that GST could be implemented
only after (i) studying its
impact on State revenues and (ii) delineating the compensation
for the States. The PSC report
also recommended Modified Bank Model of GST (Exhibit 8) as
suggested by the 13th
FC than
the IGST suggested by the FDP.
The Finance Ministry set up the Tax Administration Reform
Commission (TARC) on October
22, 2013. The mandate of the committee was to (i) prevent
economic offenses, (ii) review
existing mechanism of dispute resolution, (iii) devise methods
to widen the tax base, (iv)
strengthen inter agency information sharing and (v) propose
methods to increase voluntary tax
compliance.
Exemption List of Goods
At the EC meet on November 23, 2013, the States rejected the
GoIs proposal to include alcohol and petroleum in the GST and the
power to notify declared goods.
37 The States also argued for
33
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/gst-will-be-in-place-by-2014/article4758993.ece,
accessed on
February 12, 2015 34
http://www.thehindu.com/business/Industry/agricultural-commodity-prices-to-rise-post-gst-
kelkar/article5007105.ece, accessed on February 12, 2015 35
The figures given were based on a study commissioned by the FC
to study implication of GST on the economy. Refer Task Force on
Goods & Services Tax (2009), pp.92-94 36
http://www.prsindia.org/uploads/media/Constitution%20115/SCR%20summary-%20GST.pdf
, accessed on February 12, 2015 37
Article 286(3)(a) of Constitution of India authorises Parliament
to declare some goods as of special importance and to impose
restrictions and conditions in regard to power of States in regard
to levy, rates and other incidence of tax on such goods.
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W.P. No. 2015-03-01 Page No. 14
an independent mechanism to compensate the States for their loss
of revenue. The States wanted
special status for Jammu & Kashmir.
On December 19, 2013, Indian Council of Research on
International Economic Relation
(ICRIER) report38
on food processing industry in India mentioned the impact of GST
on non
alcoholic beverages. The report suggested that GST should treat
food and non alcoholic
beverages with uniform low tax. It also mentioned that fiscal
and regulatory barriers should be
removed to facilitate interstate movement of goods.
On February 3, 2014, P Chidambaram confessed that GST was
unlikely to be passed in the
interim budget session. In his interim budget speech of February
17, 2014, he identified GST as
a key to augmenting State revenue and moving towards a modern
tax regime.
The Indian National Congress (INC) released its election
manifesto on March 27, 2014 in which
it promised to pass the GST bill within a year, if voted to
power.39
Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) put
forth the idea of a tax system of simplicity, transparency and
certainty without explicitly mentioning GST in the election
manifesto released on April 4, 2015.
40 In its election manifesto
released on April 7, 2014, BJP mentioned that simplifying and
rationalising tax policy was a priority. The BJP promised to bring
on board all the States for the implementation of GST and
address their concerns.41
.
On May 26, 2014, Arun Jaitley became the Union FM following the
general elections.42
He met
the EC on June 10, 2014 where he emphasised that GST was a key
policy of the new GoI to
facilitate economic revival.
At the EC meet on July 3, 2014, Andhra Pradesh FM Yanamala
Ramakrishnudu brought up three
concerns of the States. They were (i) the non receipt of CST
compensation from the Centre since
2009-10, (ii) petroleum products, food, alcohol and tobacco to
be kept out of the purview of GST
and (iii) clarity on the roles of GDSA and FC.
In his pre budget meet with the EC on July 6, 2014, Arun Jaitley
discussed four issues. They
were (i) introduction of the 122nd
CAB, (ii) release of the CST compensation package, (iii)
proposal to merge service tax and Central excise duty into GST
and (iv) effective Revenue
Neutral Rate (RNR).43
On the same day, Microsoft, National Association for Software
and
Services Companies (NASSCOM) and Blackberry asked for clarity on
GST and tax on software
licenses.
38
http://www.thehindu.com/business/Industry/gst-will-benefit-food-processing-industry-
pawar/article5478407.ece, accessed on February 12, 2015
39
http://www.thehinducentre.com/multimedia/archive/01816/Indian_National_Co_1816826a.pdf,
accessed on February 17, 2015 40
http://www.aamaadmiparty.org/aap-manifesto-2014, accessed on
February 17, 2015 41
http://www.bjp.org/images/pdf_2014/full_manifesto_english_07.04.2014.pdf,
accessed on February 17, 2015 42
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/gst-govt-wants-quick-consensus/article6098433.ece,
accessed on
February 13, 2015 43
RNR is a taxing procedure in which the taxing authority receives
the same tax amount after changing the tax rates. This is done by
off setting lower tax incomes from one group with higher tax income
from another
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W.P. No. 2015-03-01 Page No. 15
In his Union budget speech on July 10, 2014, Arun Jaitley called
for the speedy implementation
of the GST.44
In a letter to the Union FM on August 6, 2014, the Madhya
Pradesh CM Shivraj Singh Chauhan
raised four concerns.45
He said that the 122nd
CAB was a departure from the division of power
between the Centre and the States as envisaged in the
Constitution. He also said that timely
compensation of CST was a concern. He asked the GoI to
operationalize Article 268 A that has
been inactive for the past ten years. He also hoped that the GST
Council was a recommendatory
body.
On November 17, 2014, the GoI agreed to include compensation to
the States in the 122nd
CAB.
Arun Jaitley floated a draft Cabinet note on the 122nd
CAB for inter ministerial consideration.46
It
was decided that further discussion was required to determine
(i) RNR for GST and (ii) threshold
limit for imposing GST on small traders.
On December 1, 2014, the Finance Ministry came out with a
roadmap for GST
implementation.47
It was decided that the 122nd
CAB would be tabled in the winter session of the
Parliament. The operationalization of the GST was decided to be
from April 1, 2016.
The 14th
FC was commissioned to look into indirect taxation issues. The
subcommittees attached
to the Finance Ministry looked into the RNR and suggested a rate
of 27 per cent.
At the EC meet on December 11, 2014, the States rejected the
122nd
CAB. The States welcomed
the GoIs announcement to release the CST compensation of Rs
11,000 cr and asked the compensation clause to be included in the
122
nd CAB. They also argued for petroleum products,
stamp duties and alcohol to be kept on the exemption list.
On December 13, 2014, Arun Jaitley met with the EC to resolve
the contentious issues.
Maharashtra FM asked the service tax coming from Mumbai to be
kept out of GST. Gujarat had
apprehensions about the compensation package. The meet ended
inconclusively.
On December 15, 2014, the Fourteenth FC submitted its report to
the President on its
recommendations on various issues including GST.
In a meet with EC again on December 17, 2014, to resolve the
impasse, the following proposals
were put forth by Arun Jaitley. On the compensation package, GoI
agreed to pay compensation
to the States for five years beginning from 2009-10. This
payment was to be made in three
phases. On keeping the petroleum products out of GST, GoI
rejected the States demand and decided to keep it within GST with
nil rate. GoI also agreed to keep alcohol out of GST.
On December 18, 2014, the Union Cabinet gave its approval to the
122nd
CAB on GST.48
The
bill envisaged (i) all indirect taxes to be subsumed under the
GST, (ii) all petroleum products and
44
http://indiabudget.nic.in/FM_Speech_Delhi_Budget_2014_2015.pdf ,
accessed on February 14, 2015 45
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/madhya-pradesh-chief-minister-shivraj-singh-chouhan-fires-salvo-on-
gst/article6285079.ece, accessed on February 14, 2015 46
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/jaitley-mulling-to-introduce-gst-bill-in-winter-
session/article6651331.ece, accessed on February 13, 2015 47
http://www.thehindu.com/business/Economy/gst-compensation-to-be-included-in-constitutional-
bill/article6608322.ece, accessed on December 13, 2015
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W.P. No. 2015-03-01 Page No. 16
real estate transactions to be brought under the GST and (iii)
the compensation clause for CST
for the first five transitional years to be included in the
draft bill.
On December 19, 2014, Arun Jaitley told the Rajya Sabha that the
122nd
CAB would be taken up
in the next session of the Parliament. On December 20, 2014, the
EC raised concern that the draft
bill was not discussed by the States before the Cabinet cleared
the bill (Exhibit 9). The EC
agreed to extend its support if the States were adequately
compensated.
48
http://www.thehindu.com/business/Industry/cabinet-nod-for-amended-bill/article6701784.ece,
accessed on
February 13, 2015
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Exhibit 1
The Evolving Tax Structure towards GST
Table 1
Tax before VAT
Levied by Type Name
Centre Direct Personal Income
Corporate Income
Capital Gains
Fringe Benefit
Securities Transaction
Banking Cash Transaction
Indirect Service
Customs Duty
Additional Customs
Basic Excise
Special Excise
Additional Excise
National Calamity Contingent Duty
CST
Education Cess
Surcharge
State Direct Estate
Gift
Inheritance
Payroll
Self Employment
Wealth
Endowment
Indirect Flat Rate Fuel
Entertainment
Lottery, Betting, Gambling
Entry
Transfer
Usage
General Sales
Additional Surcharge
Turnover
Local
Government
Octroi or Entry Tax49
Utilities (electricity, water and drainage)
Property
49
http://business.mapsofindia.com/india-tax/system.html, accessed
on February 15, 2015
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W.P. No. 2015-03-01 Page No. 18
Table 2
Taxes Subsumed under VAT and GST
GST
CENVAT
State VAT
Service
CST
Entertainment
Lottery, Betting, Gambling
Entry (State)
Octroi
Utilities
Surcharge Source:
ctax.kar.nic.in/what_vat/About%20vat%20nnew.pdf, accessed on
February 16, 2015
50
https://www.welingkaronline.org/DLP/FINANCE%20-%20CENVAT%20AND%20ITS%20IMPLICATIONS.pdf,
accessed on February 17, 2005 51
http://www.archive.india.gov.in/citizen/taxes.php?id=5, accessed
on February 17, 2015
VAT
(CENVAT)50
(Subsume the Following of the Central Tax)
(State VAT)51
(Subsume the Following of the State Tax)
Basic Excise
Special Excise
Additional Excise
National Calamity Contingent Duty
Education Cess
Usage
General Sales
Additional Surcharge
Turnover
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W.P. No. 2015-03-01 Page No. 19
Exhibit 2
EC Mandate and Constitution
Mandate of the EC
The objective of the EC when it was formed was (i) to monitor
the implementation of uniform
floor rates of sales tax in the States and UTs, (ii) to monitor
the sales tax based incentive
schemes in the States, (iii) to decide the milestones and
methods of States to switch over to VAT
and (iv) to monitor the reforms in Central Sales Tax (CST).
52
In the year 2007-08, the mandate of the EC was expanded. In
addition to the above objectives,
the EC was mandated to work with the Central government to
prepare a roadmap for
introducing GST in country wef April 1, 2010, and to deal with
all related matters.53
Constitution of the EC
The EC was formed on July 7, 2000, by the GoI. The founding
members of the EC were the nine
State FMs of West Bengal, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh,
Maharashtra, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh,
Delhi, Gujarat and Meghalaya. On August 12, 2004, the EC was
reconstituted with the State
FMs or Taxation Ministers of all the States and Union
Territories (UT) as its members. On
August 17, 2004, it was decided that EC would be registered as a
Society under the Societies
Registration Act (XXI of 1860).54
Two additional members of the bureaucracy, Additional
Secretary (Revenue), GoI and Member Secretary, EC, were then
added to the EC.
On December 12, 2006, further reconstitution of the EC was
considered at the annual general
meeting. As per the bye laws of the Society, three resolutions
were adopted. The first resolution
was that the existing structure of the EC with all the State
FMs, Additional Secretary (Revenue)
and Member Secretary was reconstituted for a period of three
years from 2006. It was also
decided that if the CM of a State or UT who is also the FM of
the State, could nominate another
member who is a minister or a political representative in the
rank of a minister, to the EC. This
nominated member may be from any political party. The third
resolution was to implement the
first two resolutions by changing the Rules of the EC. The
Member Secretary was empowered to
make changes to the Rules.
52
http://www.empcom.gov.in/WriteReadData/UserFiles/file/Annual%20Report/Annual_Report_2007_2008_en.pdf,
accessed on February 9, 2015 53
Ibid., pp.23 54
http://www.empcom.gov.in/WriteReadData/UserFiles/file/Annual%20Report/Aunual%20Report%202006-2007_Eng.pdf,
accessed on February 9, 2015
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W.P. No. 2015-03-01 Page No. 20
The EC Secretariat
The EC Secretariat had the Member Secretary, EC as the highest
ranking official. The Member
Secretary was to be a retired senior level bureaucrat. There was
also an Advisor to EC, who was
a former bureaucrat. Officer on special duty was usually
selected from the senior level
bureaucracy in the sales tax department of any member State.
There were also two officers in the
role of a Senior Administrative Officer and Principal Private
Secretary in the Secretariat. In
addition, there was a part time finance and an assistant finance
officer. All the officers were
designated as members on an annual basis and their tenure
extension was considered at the
annual meeting of the EC.
Consultative Committee
On December 6, 2004, a consultative committee was formed for
discussing issues at the national
and State level, related to the implementation of VAT. Apart
from the Chairman and member
secretary of the EC, the committee had representatives from the
Confederation of Indian
Industries (CII), Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and
Industry (FICCI), The
Associated Chambers of Commerce of India (ASSOCHAM),
Conferederation of All India
Traders, Federation of All India Traders Association and
Bharatiya Udyog Vyapar Mandal
(BUVM).
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W.P. No. 2015-03-01 Page No. 21
Exhibit 3
Taxation Structure in India before VAT
Taxes in India are classified as Direct and Indirect taxes. A
tax that is paid directly by an
individual or organization to the imposing entity is called a
direct tax.55
Direct taxes are those in
which the impact and incidence of tax are on the same agent. A
tax that is shifted from one agent
to the other till the last agent incurs the tax burden is an
indirect tax. Indirect taxes are those in
which the impact and incidence of the tax are on different
agents.
Before the introduction of VAT on April 1, 2005, tax collection
in India was divided between the
Central, State and Local governments.
Schedule VII of the Constitution states the tax structure in
India that was divided between the
three tiers of government.
Table 1
Direct Tax
Levied by Name
Centre Income other than agricultural income
Corporate
State Land Revenue
Agricultural income
Land and buildings
Capital value of an asset except agricultural land
Succession and estate duties on agricultural lands
Vehicles, animals and boats
Profession, trade, calling and employment
Centre and Appropriated by the States Estate and succession
duties other than on agricultural land
Source:
http://nacen.gov.in/inspire/uploads/downloads/53ce2a715edb1.pdf,
accessed on February 16, 2015
55
http://www.investopedia.com/terms/d/directtax.asp, accessed on
February 15, 2015
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W.P. No. 2015-03-01 Page No. 22
Table 2
Indirect Tax
Levied by Name
Centre Customs Duty
Sale or purchase of goods in interstate trade
State Sale and purchase of goods, except newspapers
Excise on alcohol and narcotics
Entry of goods into a local area
Consumption and sale of electricity
Mineral rights (subject to limitations imposed by the
Parliament)
Stamp duty except on financial documents
Goods and passengers carried by inland waterways
Levied by the Centre, Collected and
Appropriated by the States Excise Duty except on alcohol and
narcotics not contained in medical or
toilet preparation
Rates of stamp duties on financial documents
Levied and Collected by the Centre,
Appropriated by the States Railway freight and fares
Goods or passengers carried by rail or air
Tax other than stamp duties on transactions in stock exchanges
and
futures markets
Sale and purchase of newspaper or advertisements therein
Source:
http://nacen.gov.in/inspire/uploads/downloads/53ce2a715edb1.pdf,
accessed on February 16, 2015
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Exhibit 4
Tax to GDP Ratio and Indirect Taxes
The ratio of total government tax collection to a countrys Gross
domestic Product (GDP) is
called the tax to GDP ratio.56
Tax to GDP ratio over the years indicates, how much tax
collection
as a percentage of GDP has gone up, for a given country. When
tax collected grows slower than
the GDP, the ratio drops.
Trends in Tax to GDP Ratio since 1971
As per estimates, for a developing country, tax to GDP ratio
must be in the ratio of 18 per cent,
in order to ensure economic growth. For a developed country, the
ratio is in the range of 70 per
cent. At 16.49 per cent, India had one of the lowest tax to GDP
ratio and third lowest tax base
among the G20 countries in 2013. The tax to GDP ratio for direct
and indirect taxes stood at 5.97
and 10.52 respectively.
Table 1
Tax to GDP Ratio from 1950-51 to 2013-14
Tax 1950-
51
1960-
61
1970-
71
1980-
81
1990-
91
2000-
01
2005-
06
2010-
11
2013-
14
Direct Tax
to GDP
Ratio
2.22 2.24 2.12 2.18 2.09 3.31 4.54 5.78 5.97
Indirect
Tax to GDP
Ratio
3.81 4.86 7.04 9.22 11.09 9.23 9.98 9.35 10.52
Total Tax
to GDP
Ratio
6.03 7.10 9.16 11.40 13.18 12.54 15.52 15.13 16.49
Source: Public Finance Statistics 2013-1457
Indias tax to GDP ratio can be analysed before and after the
1991 comprehensive tax reforms.
Till 1980s, we an observe a steady increase in Tax to GDP ratios
due to two important reasons.
There was a steady growth rate of the economy and quantitative
restrictions were progressively
56
http://www.investopedia.com/terms/t/tax-to-gdp-ratio.asp,
accessed on February 10, 2015 57
http://finmin.nic.in/reports/IPFStat201314.pdf, accessed on
February 10, 2015
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W.P. No. 2015-03-01 Page No. 24
substituted by tariffs in the beginning of the 1980s through the
first attempts at economic
liberalization. For instance, tax to GDP ratio increased from
11.40 percent in 1970-71 to 13.4
percent in 1991 (Table 1). There was a severe drought in 1987
followed by economic stagflation.
This was succeeded by economic crisis of 1991 that led to a drop
in the tariff collection and a
declining tax to GDP ratio of 14.4 in 1996.58
In terms of tax composition, the proportion of direct taxes has
been decreasing from 21 percent
in 1970-71 to 14 percent in 1990-91. After the economic reforms,
the share of direct taxes has
grown steadily to 24 per cent in 1997-98. This was due to an
increase in both increase in income
and corporate tax. However, it is not clear how much of the
increase is due to the increase in the
pay omission wages and how much of the increase is attributable
to better tax compliance.59
The fastest growth rate of any tax category during the period
was for customs that steadily
increased from 11 per cent in 1970-71 to 23 per cent in 1990-91.
After the introduction of import
duties in 1992, the revenue from customs fell due to reduction
in tariff rates as part of Structural
Adjustment Program (SAP).60
The decline in tax to GDP ratio after the reforms is hence
attributable to the decline in the yield
of indirect taxes. One reason for the lower revenue from
indirect taxes was the reduction of tariff
rates that was drastically high before the reforms. This was not
offset by calibrating the excise
duties. Therefore, both tariffs and excise duties showed a
decline of 2.6 and seven percentage
points respectively.
The tax to GDP ratio of the Centre and States during the period
can be compared. The decline in
the ratio for Centre has been faster than the States due to the
reduction of tariffs.
58
http://www.unescap.org/sites/default/files/apdj-7-2-3-rao.pdf,
accessed on February 10, 2015 59
Ibid., pp. 71. 60
Structural Adjustment Programs (SAPs) are economic policies for
developing countries that have been promoted by the World Bank and
International Monetary Fund (IMF) since the early 1980s by the
provision of conditional loans.
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W.P. No. 2015-03-01 Page No. 25
Exhibit 5
Mandate and Key Recommendations of TAGUP
Constitution and Mandate
TAGUP was a seven member GoI advisory group set up by the FM on
June 8, 2010. The
mandate of TAGUP61
was to look into technology part of five large financial sector
projects. It
was headed by Nandan Nilekani. The other members were
i. C. B. Bhave - Former SEBI chairman
ii. R. Chandrasekhar - IT Secretary
iii. Nachiket Mor - Board Member RBI
iv. Dhirendra Swarup
v. S. S. Khan
vi. P. R. V. Ramanan
The committee was mandated to make recommendations on the
roadmap to roll out the
following five financial projects
Tax Information Network (TIN)
New Pension Scheme (NPS)
National Treasury Management Agency (NTMA)
Expenditure Information Network (EIN)
Goods and Services Tax (GST).
Key Recommendations
TAGUP submitted its report on February 5, 2011. It had two key
recommendations.62
The TAGUP has suggested that for complex IT-intensive projects,
NIUs working in the spirit of
partnership with the government be put in place to handle all
aspects of IT systems. NIUs should
be financially independent and empowered to take quick and
efficient business decisions
pertaining to attracting and retaining talent, procurement,
rapid response to business exigencies
and adopting new technologies, among other things.
The report also mentioned that, every project should have a
dedicated Mission Leader within the government with a Mission
Execution Team. The team should be manned by personnel, who
possess a diverse set of skills, including intimate familiarity
with the government processes,
specialisation in verticals such as technology, outreach, law,
as well as the ability to manage a
large decentralised organisation, among others. The group also
recommends certain monetary
and non-monetary incentives for the team. 63
61
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TAGUP, accessed on February 5, 2015
62
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/nilekani-submits-tagup-report-to-
pranab/article1156635.ece, accessed on February 5, 2015 63
Ibid.
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W.P. No. 2015-03-01 Page No. 26
Exhibit 6
Main Provisions of the DTC Bill 2010
DTC 201064
sought to consolidate and amend the law relating to all direct
taxes. The Act repeals
the Income Tax Act 1961 and Wealth tax Act 1957. DTC 2010
proposed the following changes.
Existing Rate of Income Tax
DTC changed the existing rates of income taxes in India.
Companies and unincorporated bodies
would be taxed at 30 percent of their total income. A non profit
organisation would not have to
pay tax for income below Rs 1 lakh. For income above Rs 1 lakh,
they would be charged at the
rate of 15 percent of their total income. For individuals,
income tax was exempted for income
below two lakh rupees. Tax rate was 10 per cent, 20 percent and
30 per cent respectively for
incomes between 2-5 lakhs, 5-10 lakhs and above ten lakhs.
Minimum Alternate Tax
The DTC proposed a minimum alternate tax on companies. The tax
had to be paid in case the
normal income tax of a company was less than the tax on the book
profit of a company,
applicable at 20 per cent.
Marginal Tax
The DTC had proposed a marginal tax on certain investments such
as provident funds and
pension schemes at the time of redemption.
Wealth Tax
Wealth above one crore rupees would be taxed at one per cent.
Wealth below one crore rupees
was exempted from the wealth tax.
Tax Deductions
The DTC allowed deductions of savings up to one lakh rupees to
approved funds, five lakh
rupees to life insurance and Rs 50,000 for health insurance or
education of children. Deduction
on housing loans would be up to Rs 1,50,000. There would be no
limit on deductions on loans
for higher education.
64
http://www.prsindia.org/uploads/media/Direct%20Tax%20Code,%202010.%20Bill%20Summary.pdf,
accessed on February 15, 2015
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Capital Gains Tax
For assets on which securities transaction tax is payable, the
long term capital gains (if held for
more than one year) would not apply. Short term capital gains
would be computed as half of the
actual gains. For other investment assets, long term capital
gains would be given indexation
benefits.
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W.P. No. 2015-03-01 Page No. 28
Exhibit 7
Note on Amendment Procedure in India for CAB
Amendment to the Indian Constitution is the process of making
changes to the nation's
fundamental law. The procedure of amendment in the Constitution
is laid down in Part XX
(Article 368) of the Constitution of India.65
Types of CAB
There are two types of bills that seek to amend the
Constitution.66
They are
i. Bills that have to be passed by Parliament by Special
Majority.67 ii. Bills that have to be passed by Special Majority
and also to be ratified by not less than
one-half of the State Legislatures.
(i) By Special Majority
The procedure for such bills is prescribed under Article 368 (2)
of the Constitution. These can be introduced in either House of
Parliament. Such bills can never be treated as Money Bills or
Financial Bills. No recommendation of the President is needed
for introducing these bills. These
bills have to be passed by a majority of the total membership of
that House and by a majority of not less than two-thirds of the
members of that House present and voting.
(ii) By Special Majority and Ratification
This comprises of Constitutional Amendment Bills which seek to
make any change in articles
relating to the following.
a. The Election of the President.
b. The extent of the Executive Power of the Union and the
States.
c. The Supreme Court and the High Courts.
d. Any of the Lists in the Seventh Schedule.
e. The representation of States in Parliament.
f. The provisions of Article 368 itself.68
Consensus Building for CAB
The consensus building procedure for CAB have procedures
mandated under the Rules of
Procedures and Conduct of Business in the Lok Sabha.69
The procedures for CAB is covered
under Chapter XI in sections 155-159.
65
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amendment_of_the_Constitution_of_India,
accessed on February 15, 2015 66
http://www.desikanoon.co.in/2014/05/amendment-procedure-in-india.html,
accessed on February 15, 2015 67
Special majority of Parliament refers to two thirds of its
members present and voting 68
Ibid.
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The setting up of Parliamentary Committees including EC is under
section 254 of the Rules. The
formation of PSC is mandated under section 331C of the Rules.
Its functions and mandate are
given under 331E.
Under the mandate of the EC and PSC, there are provisions to
present discussion papers, form
sub committees, focus groups and special advisory groups.
69
http://164.100.47.132/LssNew/rules/RULES-2010-P-FINAL_1.pdf,
accessed on February 15, 2015
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Exhibit 8
PSC Report Summary on 115th
CAB
The PSC report made nine suggestions about the 115th
CAB.70
1. Implementation of GST
The PSC noted that implementation of the GST should be preceded
by adequate groundwork on
the experience of other countries and a credible study on the
impact of the GST regime on state
revenues.
2. Compensation Mechanism
PSC recommended a well defined and permanent compensation
mechanism. For this purpose, it
suggested the creation of a GST Compensation Fund under the
administrative control of the GST
Council.
3. On IGST and Modified Bank Model
Under the 115th
CAB, CST was to be replaced by IGST giving exclusive rights to
GoI to levy tax
on interstate trading of good and services and imports. In
principle, IGST was thought of as
revenue neutral.
The PSC favoured the Modified Bank Model propose by the 13th
FC. Under this model, the GoI
and the States were to identify a nodal bank that would receive
the CGST and SGST and act as a
clearing house for the tax.
4. Special Powers
PSC recommended that though the power to notify declared goods
vested with GoI, the
Parliament should have the power to restrict and impose
conditions on the recommendations of
the GST council regarding the same.
The PSC also recommended the addition of a subclause that
enabled the Parliament to raise
additional taxes in exceptional circumstances.
PSC recommended that Jammu & Kashmir and the northeastern
States should be specified under
the special status category.
Another recommendation of the PSC was that the States must be
allowed to increase GST based
on a predetermined floor rate.
70
http://www.prsindia.org/uploads/media/Constitution%20115/SCR%20summary-%20GST.pdf,
accessed on February 15, 2015
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5. GDSA
The PSC recommended that GDSA be replaced by the GST council
that is empowered to settle
disputes.
6. Harmonized Tax Structure (HTS)
The PSC recommended that HTS should be the guiding principle and
not the obligatory feature
of the GST.
7. IT Infrastructure
Regarding the IT infrastructure, the PSC proposed that the
Centre provide the finance and
capacity building facilities in the States.
8. Monitoring
The PSC also suggested the formation of a GST evaluation
committee to monitor and evaluate
the implementation of GST. The mandate was to study the
immediate impact of GST on
inflation, GDP, retail price and other parameters.
9. Delegated Legislation
The PSC opined that specific concerns of the State like
exemptions, threshold and rates be
included in the bye laws and rules and not in the CAB
itself.
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Exhibit 9
Contentious Issues and their Resolution
Issue
Original
Proposal by
GoI
Demand of EC
Modified
Proposal by
GoI
Final version in
the 122nd
CAB
(December 19,
2014)
Status
Basis of
Claims
FC, TAGUP,
subcommittee
attached to
FM, Industry
PSC, FDP EC- FM meet
Exempted List
of Goods and
Services
All goods and
services to be
subsumed
under GST
Alcohol,
petroleum
products,
tobacco,
essential food,
stamp duties
No dichotomy
between Union
and State list
Unprocessed
food article,
education and
health services
by NGOs,
select public
services71
Alcohol,
unprocessed food
article in the
exemption list
Petroleum
products with nil
rate under GST
Education, health
services of the
NGOs
Resolved
without
consensus72
CST
Compensation
CST to be
completely
subsumed
under GST
Compensation
to be yearly
based on State
claim
CST
Compensation
for five years
since 2009-10
Compensation
mechanism to
be independent
of GoI
Compensation
on a tapering
basis73
of Rs
33,000 crores
from GoI to
the States in
three phases
from 2013-14
Compensation
clause in 122nd
CAB making it a
constitutional
provision
independent of the
GoI
Compensation for
five years from
2009-10
Resolved
Dual System of
Tax (CGST and
SGST)
Uniform
CGST and
SGST
Threshold
limit of small
traders to be
removed
CGST and
SGST to be
different
Threshold limit
to 1.5 crore
turnover from
existing Rs 25
lakh
CGST and
SGST to be
fixed based on
a floor rate and
a narrow tax
band to be
allowed
CGST and SGST
to be fixed based
on a floor rate and
a narrow tax band
to be allowed
In addition GoI to
levy IGST
Resolved
71
Public services will not include Railways, Post and Telegraph,
other commercial Departments, Public Sector enterprises, banks and
Insurance, health and education services 72
This category refers to those areas without unanimous consensus
from the States 73
This means 100% compensation for the first three years, 75% for
the fourth year and 50% for the fifth year
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Two Rate
System
Single tax rate Two tax rates
of standard rate
for goods,
moderate rate
for essential
goods, with a
special rate for
precious metals
and an
exemption list
Three tier
structure of tax
with 12 percent
for essential
for goods, 16
percent for
other goods
and 20 percent
for services
Three tier
structure of tax
with 12 percent
for essential for
goods, 16 percent
for other goods
and 20 percent for
services
Resolved
GST Council
and GDSA
Consisting of
Union FM,
State FMs and
MoS Revenue
Formed by
presidential
order
Veto for union
FM if
consensus not
reached
Dispute
settlement
referred to by
GoI or the
States
SC final appellate
authority
To be dropped
because of veto,
Presidential
order
To be
differentiated
from FC role
Without veto
for FM
Parliamentary
order
Without veto
Parliamentary
order
Recommendatory
powers on tax rate
and exemption list
Modalities of
Dispute settlement
No mention of
GDSA
Unresolved
(who
would be
the dispute
settling
/appeal
authority)
Input Credit IGST with GoI
acting as a
clearing house
for input tax
credit
Modified Bank
Model with
nodal bank
acting as a
clearing house
for input tax
credit.
IGST GoI to levy IGST Resolved
without
consensus
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Annexure 1
Indirect Taxation Reforms before GST
ITEC 197674
ITEC was formed by the GoI to review the existing structure of
the indirect tax system on July
19, 1976 under the Chairmanship of LK Jha, the former governor
of the RBI. ITEC submitted its
report in January 1978.
The report studied the taxes being imposed for different goods
at various levels. It found major
differences in the rates and methods of taxes being imposed in
several States. ITEC suggested
VAT to overcome the prevalent multiple tax rate structure. The
report defined VAT as a tax to
be paid by all sellers of goods and services, other than those
specifically exempted, on the basis
of value added by their respective firms.
It stated that implementation of VAT in other countries was
preceded by a detailed public
debate in chambers of commerce, industry, associations and other
firms; in Parliament and
educational institutions.
The report concluded that from an economic point of view, a tax
system covering the addition of
value at all points of progression and trade is the best, as
long as it does not generate difficulties
of cascading and distortion in relative factor prices.
On the other hand, the report also said that even though one
integrated system based on VAT is
the best possible solution, India should opt for the second best
solution.VAT was to be applied to
the manufacturing State (MANVAT) along with a restructured
system of sales tax.
The long term objective of MANVAT would be to apply it not only
at the manufacturing stage,
but extends it to cover imports, thereby freeing inputs from
taxation which is the crucial principle
of VAT. The report further gave the details of how the MANVAT
would be applied to the then
current taxation system.
Long Term Fiscal Policy (LTFP) 198575
LTFP was announced in the Union budget of 1985-86 by V P
Singh.
The LTFP set out the broad direction and strategy for fiscal
reforms, mainly taxation, to further
the objectives of growth and social justice. The policy proposed
reforms in the structure of
customs and excise duties by the merging of various central
excise duties into a single rate.
74
Sury, MM (2006). Taxation in India: History, Policies, Trends
and Outlook, Indian Taxation, New Delhi 75
http://indiabudget.nic.in/es1985-86/6%20Fiscal%20Policy%20and%20Government%20Budget.pdf,
accessed on February 16, 2015
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W.P. No. 2015-03-01 Page No. 35
It stated that VAT is the solution for removing cascading of
taxes, but due to the problems of
incorporating the sales tax of States into a centrally
administered VAT, a modified VAT or
MODVAT should be introduced.
A system of giving proforma credit to select excisable
commodities was already in place, but the
number of commodities was very less. It was suggested that all
the commodities be brought
under MODVAT. Small scale industries were not to be included
initially.
The recommendations of the LTFP were accepted and MODVAT was
introduced on a few
commodities on March 1, 1986 with reference to specified
Chapters of the Central Excise Tariff
Act, 1985.
Tax Reforms Committee (TRC) 199176
A committee of experts was constituted by the GoI through its
Resolution dated August 29, 1991
to examine the direct and the indirect tax structure. It was
headed by Raja J Chelliah with five
other members.
It recommended the adoption of a simple broad based domestic
indirect tax system which
would cover almost all commodities except a few raw produce of
agriculture and many services
with a few rates of duties.
The committee gave its view that the then excise system should
be steadily converted into a VAT
at the manufacturing level. The report of the committee gave
steps to transit the indirect taxes
into VAT at the Central Level. Extension of the VAT to the
wholesale stage was also
recommended. The committee suggested that the sales tax could be
converted to a State VAT
within the manufacturing sector.
Reforms in the 90s
Yashwant Sinha, the Union FM called a conference asking the
State FMs to study the sales tax
on goods and services including CST in December 1995. In a
meeting of all State CMs on
November 16, 1999 by the then Union FM, it was decided to take
steps for introduction of State
level harmonized VAT.
On April 1, 2000, the three existing VAT rates on manufacture,
imports and sales, further
merged into a single rate called the CENVAT. The tax base was
also widened as some
exemptions were replaced by an eight per cent tax.
EC of State FMs was formed on July 17, 2000 for the smooth
implementation of State level
VAT.
76
http://www.finmin.nic.in/the_ministry/dept_revenue/Executive_Summary.pdf,
accessed on February 16, 2015
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Task Force on Indirect Taxes 200277
A Task Force on Indirect Taxes was formed in September 2002
under the Chairmanship of Vijay
Kelkar, Advisor to Ministry of Finance and Company Affairs. The
Task Force brought out a
consultative paper in October 2002.
In its recommendations, the Task Force envisaged a
constitutionally backed implementation of
VAT from April 1, 2003. The compensation for States had to be
through a mutually agreed upon
additional resource mobilization and not through budgetary
support. It also suggested that an
Harmonised SyatemSN of goods and services and a uniform tax rate
must be in place.
77
http://www.finmin.nic.in/kelkar/report.pdf, accessed on Februray
16, 2015
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References
Books
1. Sury, M M (ed) (2006). Taxation in India 1925 to 2007:
History, Policy, Trends and Outlook, Indian Tax foundation, New
Delhi
Reports
2. Empowered Committee of State Finance Ministers (2009). First
Discussion Paper on GST, Government of India, New Delhi
3. Report of Task Force on Implementation of FRBM Act,
Government of India, New
Delhi
4. Thirteenth Finance Commission (2009). Report of Task Force on
Goods & Service Tax.
Online Resources Sourced in the Text
5. ctax.kar.nic.in/what_vat/About%20vat%20nnew.pdf,
6. http://business.mapsofindia.com/india-tax/system.html
7.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amendment_of_the_Constitution_of_India
8. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TAGUP
9. http://finmin.nic.in/14fincomm/14fcrengVol1.pdf
10. http://finmin.nic.in/reports/IPFStat201314.pdf
11.
http://indiabudget.nic.in/budget2012-2013/ub2012-13/bs/bs.pdf
12.
http://indiabudget.nic.in/es1985-86/6%20Fiscal%20Policy%20and%20Government%20Budget.pdf
13.
http://indiabudget.nic.in/FM_Speech_Delhi_Budget_2014_2015.pdf
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15.
http://164.100.47.132/LssNew/rules/RULES-2010-P-FINAL_1.pdf,
16.
http://nacen.gov.in/inspire/uploads/downloads/53ce2a715edb1.pdf
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W.P. No. 2015-03-01 Page No. 38
17.
http://tinxsys.com/TinxsysInternetWeb/GSTJointWorkingGroup.pdf
18. http://www.aamaadmiparty.org/aap-manifesto-2014
19. http://www.archive.india.gov.in/citizen/taxes.php?id=5
20.
http://www.bjp.org/images/pdf_2014/full_manifesto_english_07.04.2014.pdf
21. http://www.caaa.in/Image/23ugsthb.pdf
22.
http://www.desikanoon.co.in/2014/05/amendment-procedure-in-india.html
23.
http://www.empcom.gov.in/WriteReadData/UserFiles/file/Annual%20Report/Aunual%20Report%202006-2007_Eng.pdf
24.
http://www.empcom.gov.in/WriteReadData/UserFiles/file/Annual%20Report/Annual_Report_2007_2008_en.pdf,
25. http://www.empcom.gov.in/content/6_1_AboutUs.aspx
26.
http://www.ficci.com/spdocument/20238/Towards-the-GST-Approach-Paper-Apri-2013.pdf
27. http://www.finmin.nic.in/kelkar/report.pdf
28.
http://www.finmin.nic.in/the_ministry/dept_revenue/Executive_Summary.pdf
29. http://www.investopedia.com/terms/d/directtax.asp
30. http://www.investopedia.com/terms/t/tax-to-gdp-ratio.asp
31.
http://www.jsalaw.com/Admin/uplodedfiles/PublicationFiles/Budget%20news%20letter.pdf
32.
http://www.prsindia.org/uploads/media/Constitution%20115/SCR%20summary-%20GST.pdf
33. http://www.prsindia.org/uploads/media/Direct%20Tax%20C